MANAGER SPEAK: Dipesh Pandey, Fund Manager, FT India
What is your view on the tech sector after the Infosys guidance? Have you sold your Infosys shares? What is your allocation to the sector now?
We had immediately placed a sell order on the day of the results, though we took a big hit that day. Still, the weightage of 9.4 per cent towards the technology sector is not high enough to have a major impact on the fund.
Technology stocks look like good buys at current prices. We believe the stocks give a true reflection of the expected future growth rate of the companies.
However, we would like to wait for the results of other companies before taking a call on any further allocations. However, a further drop in the prices may prompt us to make some purchases.
What is your investment philosophy and how do you cope with highly volatile times like the one we faced last week?
We go in for research-based investment in stocks that looks good on the long-term investment horizon. This investment is spread across sectors and companies.
However, at times, it is possible that a particular sector may have been allocated more than its fair share, depending upon our view on whether the companies in that sector are better than the rest.
We have a mandate to invest upto 65 per cent of our funds in equities. Therefore, if the amount invested in equities is less than the mandated amount, the balance is maintained in money market instruments. At current prices, we may increase the allocation to stocks from current levels as valuations look very attractive.
You have good exposure to the FMCG sector. Given that the sector has not done very well, how do you justify your position?
A majority of our holdings in the FMCG sector are confined to ITC and Tata Tea. We are bullish on these companies as we believe their current valuations are cheap. The bottomlines of these companies have been growing at a much faster rate than their toplines.
Having said that, we are not that optimistic about the sector on the whole, as our allocation to FMCG stocks is lower than that of the index.
